Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press at 3:00 a.m. CDT

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — The U.S. Supreme Court has declined to hear a lawsuit filed by an Iowa woman who carried a baby for another couple as a surrogate mother but changed her mind and wanted to keep the baby. The Muscatine woman identified only as T.B. wanted the court to strike down surrogacy contracts as unconstitutional.

JEWELL, Iowa (AP) — Iowa road officials have closed a section of highway in central Iowa’s Hamilton County after several drivers hit a massive sinkhole. Iowa Patrol Sgt. Nathan Ludwig said the 9-by-8 foot hole in Highway 69 north of Jewell was reported sometime between 4 a.m. and 5 a.m. Wednesday, after five vehicles had hit it. Ludwig says only one minor injury was reported, when one driver’s head hit his steering wheel.

MASON CITY, Iowa (AP) — A Mason City man convicted of sex abuse counts involving dependent adults he was hired to care for has been jailed for violating pre-sentencing rules. The Globe Gazette reports that 19-year-old Wasfie Ahmed Alshara is behind bars after court documents say had alcohol on Sept. 29, which he was not supposed to have under the rules. Alshara pleaded guilty in August to two counts of misdemeanor assault with intent to commit sexual abuse.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — A federal judge’s ruling could mean more Iowa students with learning disabilities will qualify for special education programs. The Des Moines Register reports an administrative law judge ruled last year that Iowa education agencies violated the Disabilities Education Act by denying an Urbandale student’s access to special education classes because she was performing well in her classes. Another judge affirmed the decision. An attorney says students throughout Iowa could benefit from the ruling.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — The U.S. Supreme Court has declined to hear a lawsuit filed by an Iowa woman who carried a baby for another couple as a surrogate mother but changed her mind and wanted to keep the baby. The Muscatine woman identified only as T.B. wanted the court to strike down surrogacy contracts as unconstitutional.

She filed an appeal in May of an Iowa Supreme Court ruling that concluded for the first time in Iowa that gestational surrogacy agreements are legal and enforceable.
The ruling allowed Paul and Chantele Montover to keep the girl, now 2 years old.
The Montovers had decided at age 50 that they wanted to raise a child together and agreed to pay the woman to have a baby using an egg from an unknown donor and Paul Montover’s sperm.

The Iowa court said banning surrogate contracts would deprive infertile couples of a way to raise their own biological children. The nation’s highest court denied the woman’s petition to hear the case on Monday without comment.

Members of the Atlantic City Council, Wednesday evening, agreed to sign a letter of support for keeping the Iowa Department of Transportation’s District 4 Construction Office in Atlantic, instead of moving it to Council Bluffs. The letter will be sent to numerous State officials and legislative representatives. Cass-Atlantic Development Executive Director Russell Joyce spoke to the Council before asking for their signatures.

Joyce said he learned this past January from a retired DOT employee, that the District Engineer and Director of the IA DOT plans to transition the office to Council Bluffs over a period of time. The move would mean all new hires at the Omni-Center in Council Bluffs, and a request from the legislature to appropriate millions of dollars for the structure. Joyce said several area legislators, the Governor’s Office and DOT Commissioners were unaware of the plan. He said he eventually heard from the Director of the DOT, Mark Lowe, who said in a lengthy e-mail, that the change was an administrative decision made in Ames. The Director said he felt “There was a greater depth of talent in the metropolitan area than there was out here in rural Iowa.”

Joyce said “I take a little bit of offense by that because the last number of years, a number of young professionals have moved to the Atlantic area, regarding career opportunities, and [while] they might make a little more money somewhere else, the fact of the matter is they enjoy the lifestyle here and want to be part of the community here.” Joyce said the Director’s reasoning is not legitimate enough to warrant the move. He said most of the District Engineers, and area governmental organizations, including County Boards of Supervisors, Regional Council of Governments and others have written similar letters of support, requesting the offices be kept in Atlantic because of its centralized location to the 13-county district served by the District 4 Office.

In other business, the Council approved, by a vote of 6-0 (with Councilman Dick Casady absent), the third and final reading of an ordinance pertaining to zoning regulations, with regard to fencing in Light Industrial and Commercial Zones, and by a vote of 5-to1, approved the first reading of an amended ordinance with regard to Speed Regulations on Sunnyside Lane, from 10th to 22nd Streets. The current version stipulates a speed limit of 25-miles per hour on Sunnyside from 10th Street south, two-thousand feet, before it becomes 35-mph for the remaining 1,650-feet to 22nd Street. Councilperson Hayes was opposed to the amendment as written.

The Council approved the first reading of an amended ordinance that repeals and replaces a Chapter pertaining to trees and responsibilities within the Right-of-Way, and the approved the first reading of an amended ordinance with regard to Urban Deer Population control. The change reflects the Police Chief’s sole authority to determine the limits on the number of deer harvested within the City Limits of Atlantic, and the number of hunters authorized to hunt, during specified dates and times. The Council waived both the second and third readings and passed the Ordinance as written.

(Radio Iowa) — Farm Bureau officials have announced the organization’s new “Health Benefit Plans” will go on sale November 1st. A state law approved this past spring authorized Farm Bureau to sell what some call “skinny insurance plans.” The plans are NOT insurance. Premiums are lower because the plans do not comply with all the requirements of the Affordable Care Act.

Advocates say the “Farm Bureau Health Plans” will help Iowans who are not getting health care coverage through an employer, but make too much money to qualify for federal subsidies to buy individual insurance policies. Farm Bureau Health Benefit Plans will be managed by Wellmark, but sold by the Farm Bureau to Farm Bureau members who live in Iowa.

The Iowa Insurance Commissioner is advising Iowans who have questions about the plans to “contact Farm Bureau directly” and talk to a licensed insurance agent to discuss what options may be available. There is a three-million dollar cap on the total amount that will paid out during the lifetime of someone who is covered by one of these Health Benefit Plans. In addition, applicants will have to answer questions about their health and underwriters may deny coverage based on factors like pre-existing conditions.